My brother Karoly had a term he used for those moments of joy that stand out from the everyday, little things like when your two year-old says something that makes you laugh really hard; he called them Easter eggs. I've had a few lately, the above bouquet of flowers being one of them. The picture doesn't really do them justice, they're much brighter in real life. A guy who used to work for Aaron and his girlfriend Ashley picked them up at the Edmonds farmers market on Saturday. We haven't even seen Matt and Ashley for at least a year, but when they heard we'd had a baby they brought over flowers and cigars(for Aaron). I thought that was really sweet.
Another Easter egg was nap time. Matteas(his real, official name) was asleep and it was time for Jack to go down, so I made him a bottle and tucked him in bed, then went to check on the baby. He was fidgeting a bit so I patted his back for a minute until he settled back down, and when I came out Jack had fallen asleep in his bed all on his own. I was really anxious about addressing two really different sets of needs with the boys, but so far it's gone really well. Jack has been a little needy and a little defiant, but for the most part he's been really sweet towards the baby. He's still not over his disappointment that Matteas can't walk(not even, to his shock, if we go to Home Depot) but he really likes petting his fuzzy head and is quick to give him kisses whenever he cries. I felt really sad for Jack for the first few days after Matteas was born because I felt oddly detached from him, and part of me wished I could suspend reality for a while and just focus on the new baby while Jack's needs would somehow just be put on hold for a while. It's been quite an identity shift to go from mother of one to mother of two, but it's starting to feel more normal. I've also been making a point to spend some alone time with Jack, and yesterday we looked at his newborn pictures together. He thought it was pretty cool, and I wanted him to see that everything we're doing with the new baby we did with him when he was tiny.
Yesterday's Easter egg came in the afternoon, when I awoke from a three hour nap with the baby to find my kitchen full of Costco food and Aaron beaming about his dinner plan. He picked up a tikka masala sauce from Costco and cooked chicken, peppers and onions to go with it, which he simmered to tender perfection. Then he brought me dinner on the couch and Matteas slept while I ate. Even though I have twice as many kids now as I used to, this is way easier than the newborn stage with Jack. Matteas nurses like a pig(a really cute, desperately starving suckling pig) and sleeps beautifully, and Jack has had some struggles but I'm really impressed with how well he's adjusting.
Monday, August 20, 2007
Easter Eggs
My brother Karoly had a term he used for those moments of joy that stand out from the everyday, little things like when your two year-old says something that makes you laugh really hard; he called them Easter eggs. I've had a few lately, the above bouquet of flowers being one of them. The picture doesn't really do them justice, they're much brighter in real life. A guy who used to work for Aaron and his girlfriend Ashley picked them up at the Edmonds farmers market on Saturday. We haven't even seen Matt and Ashley for at least a year, but when they heard we'd had a baby they brought over flowers and cigars(for Aaron). I thought that was really sweet.
Another Easter egg was nap time. Matteas(his real, official name) was asleep and it was time for Jack to go down, so I made him a bottle and tucked him in bed, then went to check on the baby. He was fidgeting a bit so I patted his back for a minute until he settled back down, and when I came out Jack had fallen asleep in his bed all on his own. I was really anxious about addressing two really different sets of needs with the boys, but so far it's gone really well. Jack has been a little needy and a little defiant, but for the most part he's been really sweet towards the baby. He's still not over his disappointment that Matteas can't walk(not even, to his shock, if we go to Home Depot) but he really likes petting his fuzzy head and is quick to give him kisses whenever he cries. I felt really sad for Jack for the first few days after Matteas was born because I felt oddly detached from him, and part of me wished I could suspend reality for a while and just focus on the new baby while Jack's needs would somehow just be put on hold for a while. It's been quite an identity shift to go from mother of one to mother of two, but it's starting to feel more normal. I've also been making a point to spend some alone time with Jack, and yesterday we looked at his newborn pictures together. He thought it was pretty cool, and I wanted him to see that everything we're doing with the new baby we did with him when he was tiny.
Yesterday's Easter egg came in the afternoon, when I awoke from a three hour nap with the baby to find my kitchen full of Costco food and Aaron beaming about his dinner plan. He picked up a tikka masala sauce from Costco and cooked chicken, peppers and onions to go with it, which he simmered to tender perfection. Then he brought me dinner on the couch and Matteas slept while I ate. Even though I have twice as many kids now as I used to, this is way easier than the newborn stage with Jack. Matteas nurses like a pig(a really cute, desperately starving suckling pig) and sleeps beautifully, and Jack has had some struggles but I'm really impressed with how well he's adjusting.
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